Last Thursday at Milanello, the whole first team of AC Milan had a meeting with manager Cristian Brocchi, sporting director Adriano Galliani and owner Silvio Berlusconi. In that meeting they discussed the team's chances of actually defeating Juventus, they have a really tough test ahead of them. After the meeting, the conjuring they made was to do their best to win and bring the Coppa Italia back to Milan. Then soon after they traveled to Rome where the match will be played this Saturday.
During this Friday's press conference, manager Cristian Brocchi wanted to make a battlecry to all his players as a form of motivation. They are facing Italy's most powerful side and one of the best in Europe. So they will need all the help they can get: "It's not every day that you have the opportunity to win a trophy. It would be something wonderful, especially for those who have suffered for Milan in recent years. The players have trained well, I saw something different, but I'm not fooled by that anymore, because they did well before [last week's 3-1 defeat to] Roma, too.
"I really hope they can produce that little bit extra – it's the right moment. Every player has his pride and his professionalism. For many of them this is their last chance to win something. Those who are leaving will go with a good memory, they'll bring home a victory which will go into the history of the club. All teams have flaws. The strong ones are those who have fewer, who have real ferocity. Juve have that and a winning mentality that helped them recover from the start of the season," he said.
"But if you fight, you can win. There are games where the result matters more than the play. Tomorrow, the only thing that matters is giving Juve a tough time. I'm always fired up – I live as if I were still a player. But at the same time I need to have the calmness to react in the decisive moments of the game against a great coach like Allegri."
About his future, Brocchi said: "What counts is the final. I'd be happy to continue with Milan, but Brocchi is not important at the moment. If I'm not the coach next season, I'll still have had a wonderful experience. There are other pressures on you as a coach, especially from outside, but as long as I've given 100 per cent, I'm not worried."
Photo credit: AC Milan